yes i think it is necessary that we should spend some time praying for christian priests because they are meant to be the spiritual leaders for "lay" people and very often the layman doesn't realise that they are also ordinary human beings. they are ordinary ppl just like all of us, who have recieved the calling to lead different lives with sometimes more responsibility than others. the power that is invested in their lives makes them more accountable and gives them greater responsibility. so it is up to us to pray for our leaders.
but i don't think that wrong doings of a priest should be "covered" up just to save the image of a church or a particular denomination. action should be taken. i am not condemning anyone and i am not saying that if a priest does wrong he should be condemned. but it shold be made known. in the past this was not done so that is why such incidences continued. i'm talking here, mainly about the child abuse that many priests have been acused of. sexual child abuse. if this is covered up, who suffers? maybe the church retains its image, but who suffers? the children. innocent children. if such things are made public, and priests are punished in the same way as any human being would be punished if they were caught of the same crime, such incidences would definitely be curbed. like i said earlier, when saying this, i am not condemning anyone. we are all human beings and capable of sin. but when david sinned, even though he was so beloved in God's eyes and even though he was forgiven! , he sufferd teh consequence did'nt he? his child born of sin died. God has given us power but with it, responsiblity too. so if we don't act as responsible children, we will suffer for it. hence just as we pray for our families, friends etc, we should pray sincerely for the leaders that God has chosen for his flock that they will be responsible leaders and lead their lives according tot hte vocation they have chosen and the calling htey have recieved. we should also be responsible toward ourselves and our children, and when such incidences are knon, we should not try and hide it for the sake of our church. the church should not be based on lies. in Jesus sheril daniel grahamstown, south africa Hello Joynet Friends, I am from Cochin, Kerala, India. These days I am mostly at my parents' house in the village, Kumbalanghi. The evenings are quite relaxed, with a long dip in the pond and sometimes a walk near the river side. At about 9pm I spend quite some time in intercession. I pray for Jesus Youth all over, especially those with responsibilities in it and those who have asked for prayer. I remember Joynetters and many faces in it and it goes on, International JY conference in Canada, the Rex Band trip, etc are uppermost in my mind. But one intention comes back to my mind again and again, that is, the need for urgent prayer for priests. "The harvest is plentiful . . . . Pray the Lord of the harvest . . " (Mt. 9: 37) Let me share some of my thoughts so that a few of you readers may respond. We have to pray for priests. Priesthood, I believe, is a wonderful invention of the Holy Spirit. I think of many great priests I know, some of them in this network, Joynet. Some Bishops are very close to my heart. I very well know that one priest alive in Spirit is indeed a mighty force for the building up of the Kingdom. All over the world a great number of priests are doing this wonderful work of God, and we have to pray for Priests. "I do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me through their word" (Jn. 17: 20). When I hear about failures in the life of some priest, I again say we have to pray for priests. They are called for a big mission and they have responded. They were set apart and were given support and training. But they are from among us and need our support. While talking to a big group of priests two weeks back, one of them was sharing from his heart, 'Sir, don't forget, we are human. We need your love and support'. We have to pray for priests. I dream of a wide network of people who will love the Church, love the priests and earnestly pray for them. "If two of you agree on earth about anything they ask . . ." (Mt. 18:19). I can never do the wonderful amount of God's work that any single priest does. (Though sometimes some priests tell us that many of us Jesus Youth do much more than any of them, I believe that our effectiveness comes from our sharing of the work of these priests.) Even if I cannot work like a prist, I can surely have a share of the abundant graces of priesthood by loving and praying for priests. "He who receives a prophet because he is a prophet shall recieve a prophet's reward. . . even a cup of cold water . . shall not lose his reward." (Mt. 10:41). I don't have a complete idea, but we must have a network to specifically PRAY FOR PRIESTS. There has to be certain things that (i) each one in this network should do and (ii) certain things they do together as a body of intercessors. (i) Individually, - Daily take time to remember priests with love and pray for them. => I remember priests in general and then specifically think of the priests I know and life them to the Eternal Priest. And then I say a decade of the rosary for them. - Love and respect priest. => I greatly value my relationship with priests. It is a great thing to know a priest. There is an age-old custom of kissing the hand of a priest. At times it is a little embarrassing, but I take great joy in kissing the hand of some of them. - Try not to spread bad news about priesthood rather spread inspirational tidings. - Collaborate in whatever way possible with the good things that priests are doing. and more . . (ii) as a network called PRAY FOR PRIESTS, would some of you like to give some ideas for me. So, do pray for priests, Eddy/Cochin/ India **************************************************************** This mail is generated from JOYnet, a Jesus Youth mailing list. To unsubscribe, send a mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe to this mailing list, visit http://www.jesusyouth.org/joynet For automatic help, send a mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] In case of any issue related to the mailing list contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] **************************************************************** LAUNCH - Your Yahoo! Music Experience **************************************************************** This mail is generated from JOYnet, a Jesus Youth mailing list. To unsubscribe, send a mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe to this mailing list, visit http://www.jesusyouth.org/joynet For automatic help, send a mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] In case of any issue related to the mailing list contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] ****************************************************************
